apply for a grant
Partnering with Communities
We believe that strategic and equitable grantmaking has the power to deliver a triple benefit: improved health, well-being, and opportunity for young people today, throughout adulthood, and for future generations.
What We Care About
Our six funding priorities are strategically designed to advance our mission of creating equity in health, well-being, and opportunity for Colorado’s young people and their families. We invite organizations whose work aligns with our funding priorities and priority populations to explore available funding opportunities.
Our Grantmaking Philosophy
Our approach to grantmaking reflects our values, mission, and commitment to health equity. Our grantmaking philosophy is both inspired by and aligned with the Trust-Based Philanthropy Project. This approach is grounded in a set of core values that aim to advance equity, shift power, and foster mutually accountable relationships. At the heart of trust-based philanthropy are six key practices:
- Provide multi-year, flexible funding
- Conduct thorough research and due diligence
- Simplify and streamline paperwork
- Be transparent and responsive
- Solicit and act on feedback
- Offer support beyond the grant itself
Centering the practices of trust-based philanthropy in our grantmaking philosophy is a starting point on our journey toward authentic trust-based philanthropy. Our team continually integrates these values and practices across all areas of our work using feedback loops to drive ongoing improvement. We remain committed to sharing our learnings as we collaborate to build a more just and equitable nonprofit-funder ecosystem that prioritizes relationship-building, power-sharing, mutual learning, and collaboration.
Open Funding Opportunities
Deadline:
Part 1 due November 14, 2024
Part 2 due February 6, 2025
Youth Health and Well-Being
Supporting young people, strengthening families, and building youth-centered communities.
Focus Areas:
• Supporting Young People
• Strengthening Families
• Building Youth-Centered Communities
Selected applicants will be invited to submit Part 2. Applicants will be notified of a decision in early December 2024.
Deadline:
Link to apply available on November 6, 2024
Part 1 due January 16, 2025
Part 2 due February 20, 2025
Caring for Pueblo County
Elevating the power of people and place to create equity in Pueblo County.
Focus Area:
• Children, Youth, and Families
Selected applicants will be invited to submit Part 2. Applicants will be notified of a decision by the end of January 2025.
How to Apply
We work to make the grant application process as simple as possible. Our team is happy to guide you through each step of the process.
Step 1: Confirm your eligibility
Caring for Colorado considers applications from organizations that benefit the people of Colorado and are:
- Charitable, nonprofit organizations with tax-exempt classification from the Internal Revenue Service; or
- Tax-supported institutions including state and local governments and schools.
New or emerging organizations or for-profits are permitted to apply through a tax-exempt organization acting as a fiscal agent. The most common type of fiscal agent arrangement is between a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt charitable organization and a non-tax-exempt group. The fiscal agent has the ultimate authority and responsibility to see that the funds are used for the intended purpose; it cannot simply be a pass-through organization.
Caring for Colorado does NOT fund:
- Organizations or projects that unlawfully discriminate with regard to employees, volunteers, delivery of programs or services, or clients based on age, sex, religion/creed, race, ethnicity, color, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, disability, marital status, military or veteran status, pregnancy, or genetic information.
- Individuals.
- Activities supporting political candidates.
Step 2: Review our funding opportunities
Once you confirm basic eligibility, be sure to thoroughly review each funding opportunity for additional eligibility requirements, grantmaking guiding principles, timelines, and funding types.
Step 3: Submit your Part 1 application
Each funding opportunity announcement provides resources to help you complete your application, such as a recorded webinar, an application template with guidance, and the opportunity to sign up for a virtual meeting with our staff.
Caring for Colorado utilizes a two-part online application process. The Part 1 application is designed to provide grant-seekers with a quick, low-barrier opportunity to share basic information about the organization and proposed work. Staff reviews Part 1 applications to determine eligibility and alignment with the funding opportunity. Based on this review, Part 1 applicants are either invited to submit a full application or declined for moving to Part 2.
The Part 1 application is submitted online and does not require that you register in the Caring for Colorado grantmaking portal. Follow the directions on the online form to complete the application. Important note: You cannot save your work while working on the Part 1 online form. A Word document with all Part 1 application questions is provided with each funding opportunity. For best results, we suggest that you use Google Chrome as your web browser. Please read the directions carefully.
If you are unable to complete an online application, please contact our grants management team at grants@caringforcolorado.org to discuss alternative options.
Step 4: Check your email
Application review begins after the submission deadline. Proposals submitted prior to the deadline will not be reviewed early and those submitted after the deadline will not be reviewed. All applicants will be notified via email within one week of submission to confirm the successful receipt of the application and to share the review timeline.
If your application is not selected to move forward in the review process, a member of our Philanthropy Team will email you to share why your request was not approved. Depending on the volume of requests, there may be an opportunity to speak directly to a staff member about the decision.
Applicants moving forward in the review process will receive an email invitation outlining the next steps in the application process within four weeks of the Part 1 deadline date.
Step 5: If invited, submit your Part 2 application
Part 2 of the grant application must be submitted through our online grant portal, Fluxx, by 5 p.m. on the second deadline date.
Part 2 applicants need an account in our online grants portal. If your organization has previously registered for an account, you can log in and complete Part 2. If you have not applied previously, you will receive login credentials via email after you are invited to move forward to Part 2. Please contact grants@caringforcolorado.org if you do not receive login instructions within three business days of receiving an invitation.
Our Part 2 application has five primary sections. Click here to see an example PDF of a recent Part 2 Application. (link to highlight)
- Proposal Objectives and Outcomes: Each applicant will be asked to identify at least one objective and a subsequent outcome. The purpose of this section is to identify the focus of the proposed work and to be outcome oriented. (for example, , changes that occurred for participants, increased capacity, progress on organizational strategy/goals, or skills developed). If selected for funding, these outcomes will be used in evaluating the success and challenges of your work through required reporting.
- Demographic Information: Caring for Colorado collects demographic data to help us better understand our grantmaking and evaluate the effectiveness of our work in advancing our mission and commitment to equity. The information collected serves as one data point, among many, in our efforts to understand how our partners are working to equitably build a healthier future for Colorado’s young people and their families. We recognize that requesting this information adds to the amount of time it takes to complete the application, and we appreciate your willingness to share this information with us. We understand that you may not have the demographic data for some or all the sections in this form. If you do not collect any demographic data on your board, staff, or communities served, you may indicate that in the template. If you collect some demographic data, please complete the applicable sections.Click here for an Excel template (link to file) you may use to gather your organization’s available demographic data. Please note that all demographic data must be input into the online application.
- Financial Summary:
In the financial summary section, you will be asked to provide the following amounts for two full fiscal years: total assets, total liabilities, total revenue, and total expenses. In addition, depending on your organization’s business type, you will need to attach certain financial documents (see required attachments section below). - Narrative Questions:
Narrative questions may vary based on the funding opportunity. We will provide a Microsoft Word template with required narrative questions and guidance about what we hope to learn from your responses. - Required Attachments:
Not all funding opportunities require the same attachments. At most, you will be required to upload the following attachments:- Board of Directors: List of the board of directors, with titles and terms
- Key Staff: List of key staff, with titles and tenure
- Major Contributors: List of the major contributors to the organization and contribution amounts for the previous fiscal year
- Current-year annual operating budget
- Program/Project Budget: This form is submitted as an attachment in the portal (link to excel document in WP) and is NOT required for general operating requests. The budget consists of three parts: projected expenses, projected income, and a narrative description of expense items.
- Financials:
- Tax-exempt organizations requesting more than $25,000 submit audited financials for the most recently completed fiscal year-end. If audited financials are unavailable, please provide your most current IRS Form 990/990EZ. If you do not file an IRS Form 990 or 990EZ, please provide an internal fiscal year-end balance sheet and income statement.
- Governmental entities do not need to provide additional financial attachments (please still provide your current-year operating budget above).
- For fiscally sponsored projects, submit the fiscal sponsor’s audited financials for the most recently completed fiscal year-end.
Step 6: Check your email again
A member of our team will email you to discuss the next steps of the process. Some of our funding opportunities will include site visits. Following board approval, funding decisions will be shared with applicants via phone or email. All applicants who complete a full application but are not awarded funding will be offered the opportunity to connect with a member of our team to discuss the decision.
Contact our Team
Frequently Asked Questions
Review our responses to common questions about us, what we fund, and how to apply.
Search Our Grants Database
Learn more about Caring for Colorado’s past grants.
Contact Us
Our grants management team is available to answer your questions.